Tsai voices concern over pension reform progress

By Chris Wang / Staff reporter

Wed, Jan 30, 2013 - Page 3

Former Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) chairperson Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday expressed concerns about the transparency and completeness of the government’s pension reform proposal, which is due to be announced today.

“I haven’t seen the entire government proposal [on pension reform], but from what I’ve read in the newspapers, it seems to lack transparency and government efforts to communicate with the public on the matter are questionable,” Tsai said yesterday in Taipei.

President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) is scheduled to unveil pension reform plans today for about 1.2 million active and retired military personnel, educators and civil servants, as well as about 10 million other workers.

Pension reform is “more than a numbers game” because it involves the public’s sense of security about retirement, as well as fair distribution of resources and wealth, she said.

People’s concern was a result of a lack of government transparency, communication and negotiation, Tsai said.

It was important to make pension funds sustainable and for reform to be as comprehensive as possible, so people would not have to endure more reforms in the future, she said.

Tsai urged the government to handle the issue cautiously as a failed or incomplete reform would likely incite division and conflict.

“The last thing we want to see is for the Chinese Nationalist Party [KMT] caucus to use its legislative majority to pass the proposal without regard to the consequences,” Tsai said.

The DPP said it has completed its reform proposal and would make it public after the government’s announcement.